The present invention is directed to decorative lamps, and particular, lamps including window displays for viewing works of art to provide a three-dimensional viewing effect and to eliminate distortion resulting from the frustoconical configuration of standard lampshades.
Lamps and other devices used to display artwork or photographic material are generally known to the art. For example, the following United States patents disclose display devices in which one-dimensional artwork or photographs are inserted into a lampshade having a window opening to provide an illuminated display: U.S. Pat. No. 2,680,317 issued to Lewis on June 8, 1954; U.S. Pat. No. 2,702,492 issued to Cline on Feb. 22, 1955; U.S. Pat. No. 2,823,477 issued to Willard on Feb. 18, 1958; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,456,106 issued to Gluschkin on July 15, 1969. Examples of known devices for providing illuminated and/or three-dimensional displays are illustrated by the following patents: U.S. Pat. No. 2,026,713 issued to Terwilliger on Jan. 7, 1936; U.S. Pat. No. 1,244,959 issued to Conover on Oct. 30, 1917; U.S. Pat. No. 636,319 issued to Camp on Nov. 7, 1899; U.S. Pat. No. 1,499,891 issued to Storer on July 1, 1924; U.S. Pat. No. 2,577,320 issued to Fenyo on Dec. 4, 1951; U.S. Pat. No. 3,829,998 issued to Flax on Aug. 20, 1974; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,438,579 issued to Engel on Mar. 27, 1984.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,565,553 issued to Foley on Aug. 28, 1951 discloses a three-dimensional picture device which is suitable for use in various types of advertising or other displays, and in various articles such as lamps and lampshades. When used in a lampshade, the device includes a transparent window or viewing section defined on the surface of the lampshade, and a plurality of picture sheets mounted within the lampshade and spaced apart from each other to provide a three-dimensional effect when viewed as a composite through the window. The picture sheets are curved in a direction opposite to the curvature of the surface of the lampshade and thus are not concentrically mounted with respect to the lampshade. Additionally, the lampshades disclosed in the Foley patent are uniformly cylindrical in cross section and thus Foley does not recognize or address the problem of distortion of a three-dimensional image resulting from a lampshade having a frustoconical configuration.
It is the primary object of the present invention to provide a three-dimensional illuminated display device for a lamp having a standard frustoconical configured lampshade in which the components forming the three dimensional images are designed and mounted to reduce or eliminate distortion in the final three-dimensional composite display.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a generally improved display device utilizing a frustoconical lampshade to provide an improved composite image enhancing a three-dimensional effect.